How "Pride" Has Let Us Down

Disclosure: To the friends I have made over the course of my life who have stuck with me through thick and thin, please know I would never include you in this group that I'm about to discuss. While we all have similar or wildly different beliefs, you are my community of lovable misfits and I love you all for accepting me. Now, down to business...

So, this is something that Is not going to be popular and will likely ruffle some feathers. Personally I won't be celebrating pride this year or any year in the foreseeable future. What is supposed to be a time to come together, accept and be accepted and to highlight the diversity and walks of life of a supposedly welcoming community, the overall LGBTQ construct has failed to make certain that ALL it's brothers and sisters feel welcome year after year. It's as if you don't fit the mold of the "average gay American" who loves to party, throw shade, celebrate what the media pronounces as beautiful and just generally perpetuate basic-ness/mediocrity, then you don't exist. 

When you're too weird, or not light enough, not skinny enough, not tall enough, or not promiscuous enough etc., then you don't deserve to be part of the group and celebrated. Maybe that's just my experience, but I have NEVER felt welcomed or loved by this "community" at large. 

There is still so much division, discrimination and downright ugliness that I have seen over the years, that I haven't felt the desire to spend my time or money amongst people who hate me. The worst part is that they don't even know me to hate me. I've never fit the plastic mold of what I was supposed to be. I don't fit the stereotypes that are perpetuated about most black men. I certainly don't fit the mold of what it means to be a gay man who's defined only by his sexuality. I'm just me and more times than not, I'm shunned because of my individuality. 

I have tried friend's advice to change my attitude towards people, not be so critical of those who have abandoned me and to not let the rampant discrimination get to me from this supposed all inclusive group, but I have to tell shine a light on a very real truth. Just like a bigoted hetero male who is afraid that some gay guy is looking at him funny, the same is true of gay men with "background privilege" when they are presented with someone that wasn't struck from their same mold. That someone may admire them for their beauty or their personality, means nothing to them; and maybe it never did because they weren't taught the golden rule or to just be decent humans. They have been taught by their parents, upbringing and finally this "community" that you stick with your own. Too many times has the sentiment of "you can't sit with us" has been pushed and accepted as doctrine. Too many times young men and women have taken their lives due to bullying, feeling isolated and not feeling loved by their brethren. It's really a sad thing to think about when we should all be coming together in this new and socially freer millennium. 

So, while everyone is celebrating and having a good time being happy about their privileged gay pride in themselves, I'll be continuing my solitary, big tent community-less life. It takes way too much time and energy to make someone change their mind and see how special us misfits are in our own unique and special ways.

Ethnicity: Is it ok that the Jew is only ethnicity that is "off limits"?

So I'm reading this article What's Up With The Jews? by opinion writer Stanley Fish via the New York Times and I find myself questioning, like many, the validity that the Jew is the only culture/entity/race/ethnicity that is completely off limits. I'm looking at this from a different perspective though.

Forget making fun of or going with usual thought that the the Jews are responsible for bankrupting everyone else and in control of everything we see and hold dear, let's talk about what Mr. Fish touched on briefly in regards to the Jewish nation, Israel.

I've always been a believer of nation states being self sufficient and prosperous as we'd like to continue having for ourselves in the US. Sure everyone needs aid from time to time and that's totally ok. My problem lies with all nations not taking responsibility for their actions perceived and or real. In this case we're talking about Israel.

When Mr. Netanyahu addressed the US Congress today with the overarching theme that the US is a "friend" and ally, I said ok. When he congratulated President Obama and the US for getting bin Laden, I said ok. When he started talking about not being able to go back to the 1967 borders to create a Palestinian State because they are "indefensible", but continues to condone the settlement of areas that are in to this day in conflict, I said whoa. I wanted to ask why they aren't defensible number 1, and number 2 did you forget how you came by these lands that are in question?

Granted, the US is at fault for supporting and sponsoring their side of this mess throuh the years but that doesn't mean that we should all be indoctrinated into beleiving it was all for the greater good or that the Israeli's shit doesn't stink and are only thinking of our and their security in the region and that they are our forver friend because of our "support". This is kind of hard to stomach considering that the Prime Minister still perpetuates a policy that, on it's face, means the eviction of a people from their ancestral lands. The reason for this is long and involved as most things are for the Middle Eastern region, but suffice it to say an Jewish state needed to be created. Historically the two peoples shared this land. they sahre it now. what's at stake here is politics and face-saving in my opinion.

We have gotten into more conflicts over the years because we were looking out for Israel and our "national security interests" in the region. I call bullshit. Oil and influence to control the flow of oil from the region is not good enough to enter into conflicts that do not concern our national security. We like everyone else need to learn that imperialistic causes and missions aren't gaining us any friends and will not secure our homeland in the long run. What it will do is agitate and bring trouble to our shores. We need to become energy independent and fiscally responsible by all means necessary to set an example and balance out the relations between the global states.

I'll cut this short and open it up for discussion with these questions:

1. Why is it that we always turn a blind eye to what certain allies do for their "security"?

2. Persecuted in the past or not, WHY do we not hold accountable and prosecute the "friends" we call allies for their wrongs if we're supposed to be the leading paragon of morality?

3. When is the last time that we can point to that is high or even low profile that Israel has directly intervened on our behalf?

4. Why do we elect representatives who lead us like sheep to the slaughter?

We as a people should be smarter that this and if we're not (right now we aren't) we need to wake up and smell the shitstorm that's at our doorstep.

American Ingnorance Does NOT Lead to American Exceptionalism

A lot has been going on in the world lately most of which goes on unnoticed by the general public and it's crazy maddening. Admittedly I've been distracted by things going on in my personal life but even that's no excuse not to stay informed and spread the knowledge that I gain on a day to day basis with my followers and whomever I come into contact with. I've ranted about people not taking ownership of their own ideas and ideals and I still find myself wondering why people subscribe to fake news organizations, a-la Fox News and the like. It's such an insult to the human intelligence.


I'm also wondering why, with a president as intelligent and reasonable as we have, batshitcrazy right-wingers are dictating our social agenda? Any thoughts on this other than it's better to work with our enemies (Republicans/tea-baggers) than fight them? I'm sure that's a valid argument and all, but it was their fault for getting them into the mess for the last 8-10 years wasn't it? For that reason, I propose a witch hunt!

Some wouldn't agree, but it's my belief that these a-holes should be exposed for the silver-tongued, two-timing shysters that they are by all means necessary. Remember that saying "throw the bums out"? Looks to me like we need to become a country of our word again.

Furthermore, ignorance isn't bliss. That's why we are where we are as a nation now. For too long we've allowed people that do not have our (the laity) best interests in mind. They only care about their bottom line and what they believe are the values that should be promoted. Our policies socially and politically should be based in reality and on rational, tried and true solutions that make sense and are not based on an individual or minority inclinations. Everything now is all just a little to subjective in my opinion and not nearly based in fact but mostly fiction and trial and error.

As it stands, this isn't a democratic society.

Do you really feel that your representatives are fighting for your rights? If you think they do, and that they're just like you, I direct you to look at their bank accounts/assets and where the funding's coming from. I guarantee that lobbyists are in these public servants pockets and hearts. Take a look at their views on DADT, marriage equality, wall street/financial reform, war, foreign policy, domestic policy & best of all religion in politics. If after looking at their voting records and personal views on each you still feel these "elite" politicians have your best interests in mind, then I submit that you're more delusional that I gave the American public credit for.
People I encounter, whether it's at the office, the gym or the grocery store want to tout that we're the best country in the world and that we can do now wrong. To those people, I just shake my head and wonder if they've ever read a history book that wasn't immediately slanted from the presses in our favor from the good ole boy publishers based in Texas; you know, that consummate fountain of intelligence and knowledge that consistently threatens to secede from the union.

I'll finish with this for now: American Exceptionalism can't be gained through complacency. If you want change, pull your head out of the sand; you're not and ostrich and you're capable of intelligent thought. Remember, evolution separated us from the rest of the animal kingdom by granting us the ability to rationalize and problem solve. Let's start solving for X.

Sad Day

I can't even write about this one today. Just go here to my friend John's blog.

Wake up, grow up and teach your children not to hate America.

More Space Junk?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39381001/ns/technology_and_science-space/

Instead of launching more crap into orbit to "check" on all the junk we've left up there, why dont we find a way to collect the crap and stop polluting beyond our means? Spending almost a billion dollars on a space junk hall monitor, I mean really.

Just saying.

Twamps = Teen Vampires

http://bodyodd.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/09/23/5166992-love-bites-teens-stop-sucking-each-others-blood-or-youre-grounded

After reading this, first, let me say this is some BS!

Ok I have a healthy interest in all things supernatural, even the vampire and werewolf myths, but this whole "I'm gonna bite you thing to feel closer to you" is insane and in my opinion another example of our society going to the crapper due to the marketing and sensationalism of this recent movie, TV and fictional book trend.

I can get how some of these teens today find solace in a book about love between "different" beings, because they're feeling lonely and brooding about what they can't have themselves or are misunderstood. Let's face it, we all went through it at some point and most of us still are to some degree. But guess what, we dealt with it and moved on. We didn't create or try to live the fantasies that we read because we were more realistic than these twamps living a "dream". We knew we would be committed for being crazy or even worse, not be taken seriously. I know i probably sound old and conservative by saying that but I like reality and until we find some sort of other humanoid life out there that we're compatible with, I'm calling foul.

Just because you find it hard to live in the real world and deal with things as they come does not mean you have to go off the deep end to pretend you're a vampire and even further, suck someone's blood. That's just nasty.

It really seems like parents not spending enough time with their kids forcing them to grow up by themselves unsupervised and whet do they do, they begging living an unsustainable life. They get everything they desire just to shut them up and not disturb mommy or daddy. This "upbringing" will inevitably lead to a dangerous future where reality and fantasy will not be separated in our kid's minds.

Kids, grow up. Parents...do your damned job!

Green News!

The Near Future

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39324391/ns/us_news-environment/

Finally! someone's got the stones to start trying on a mass scale. Congrats to the Brits for taking a step forward. Now lets clean up and streamline the effort between government and the private sector on the need and production so we can stop destroying the environement. Next step...Orbital Elevators!